In response to the staggering rate of sexually transmitted diseases among youth in the U.S., Planned Parenthood of Illinois (PPIL) is working with MTV, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to kick off National STD Awareness month with the return of the award-winning campaign, GYT: Get Yourself Tested.
According to a 2008 CDC study, Illinois ranks 7th among 50 states in syphilis and chlamydia cases, and 11th among 50 states in gonorrhea cases.
"GYT encourages Americans under age 25 to talk with health care providers and partners about getting tested for STDs," said Beth Kanter, senior vice president of External Affairs. "
As part of GYT, Illinois youth will be directed to Planned Parenthood of Illinois' 17 participating health centers for comprehensive STD testing and treatment.
PPIL's Teen Awareness Groups (TAG) in Bloomington, Champaign and Decatur will also be hosting educational sessions on STDs at local high schools and colleges throughout the month of April.
These high school peer educators will also be creating videos about GYT to blitz on YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.
Students from PPIL's Advocates for Choice college groups will also be participating in GYT by hosting campus condom crawls at Northern Illinois University, Illinois State University and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to raise awareness about the importance of condom use in STD prevention.
Both groups will be hosting viewing parties to show mtvU's Dean's List, which will follow a college freshman as she gets tested at a Planned Parenthood health center. The episode dispels myths about STDs and testing, and talks to young people about why it's important to GYT in college today.
"It's critical that young women, men and teens know how to protect themselves against STDs," said Kanter. "PPIL's TAG students and Advocates for Choice groups are using GYT as an opportunity to start conversations about STDs and encourage their peers to get tested."
This year, GYT is rolling out a series of new initiatives on-air, online, and on the ground at college campuses and in more than 4,000 health centers and clinics across the nation.
For more information go to www.GYTNOW.org.
